Method and apparatus for building retaining walls, piers, etc.



Aug. 9, 1932. w. GRIESBACH 1,870,248

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR BUILDING RETAINING WALLS, PIERS, ETC

Filed March 2, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I II III

I Iii I I I I I SI: III

\ {l7 2& 16a 12 E4. 14 E f- II I 1a I 13 I 18 II INVENTOR WALTER GRIES EACH ATTORNEY g- 9, 1932. I w. GRIESBACH 1,870,248

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR BUILDING RETAINING WALLS, EIERS, ETC

Filed March 2, 1931 2 Sheets-Shee 2 IN V'EN'IOR WALTER GRIESBACH FIG. 10

ATTORNEY Patented Aug. 9, 1932 uuiran STATES PATENT OFFICE WALTER GRIESBACH, F MONTREAL, QUEBEC, CANADA.

Application filed March 2,

This invention relates to the building of bridge piers, retaining walls and similar structures usually erected on the bed of a river or other body of water. The object of the invention is to provide an improved method and apparatus for the rapid and economical erection of such structures.

The invention resides, more particularly, in the construction and use of a pneumatic caisson of-novel design. As is well known, the ordinary pneumatic caisson consists of a. working chamber surmounted by a coderdam having a horizontal cross section similar to that of the working chamber which is usually rectangular or circular. Shafts giving access to the working chamber for the admission of compressed air and for the lowering and removal of materials are usually erected on the roof of the working chamber within but independently of the cofferdam structure. These shafts are frequently buried in the complete structure and in addition to the loss thus entailed, usually tend to weaken'the concrete filling of the cofferdam. When a cylindrical caisson structure is employed, the cofferdam portion invariably consists of a single unit rising from the working chamber and made of sections superimposed one upon the other. Whether rectangular or cylindrical, the sections of the colferdam are relatively large and unwieldy and require the use of heavy and expensive construction equipment. Coiferdams of the 35 rectangular type, as heretofore constructed, also require to be heavily braced and add materially to the cost of labor and materials.

The present invention eliminates these difficulties by providing a cofferdam of novel construction including a plurality of cylindrical units of relatively small diameter rising from the roof of the working chamber. The working chamber is preferably rectangular and is designed to provide for the construction of a common footing of adequate area supporting all of the cylindrical units of the cofi'erdam. The cylindrical shape of the units comprising the coiferdam is of particular advantage in that it renders the 'coiferdam sufiiciently resistant to water 1931. Serial No. 519,565.

pressure to eliminate the need of the expensive bracing necessarily resorted to in the erection of coiferdams of the rectangular casing type. The small diameter and cylindrical shape of the coiierdam units also enables the cofi'erdam to be conveniently erect ed without the aid of the heavy and eXpensive construction equipment usually employed in work of this character. Moreover, the use of cylindrical units in the building of the cofierdam has a decided advantage in connection with the building of certain types of retaining walls, since the height of selected units of the complete wall may be conveniently varied to leave gaps in the wall structure for the passage of sluiceways 'or the like. As the cylindrical units of the coderdam are initially formed as hollow shells rising from the roof of the working chamber, certain of these shells may be temporarily used asshafts for the admission of compressed air to the working chamber and for the lowering and removal of materials and, hence, take the place of the independent shafting ordinarily employed for this purpose, besides forming an integral part of the complete structure.

Proceeding now to a more detailed discussion of the invention, reference will be had to the accompanying drawings, where- 1n Figure 1 is a vertical sectional View through a pneumatic caisson constructed in accordance with this invention.

Figure 2 is a plan view of the construction shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a vertical transverse sectional view taken along the line 33 of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a view in side elevation of a modified construction in which the height of the cylindrical units forming the cofierdam is varied to provide a gap in the complete structure.

Figure 5 is a view in side elevation of a pneumatic caisson having the cylindrical units of the cofi'erdam spaced apart as would occur in the building of bridge piers and in certain other classes of work.

Figure 6'is a view similar to Figure 2 but showing a slight modification.

Figure 7 is a view in side elevation of a further modification.

Figure 8 is a top plan view of the construction shown in Figure 7 Figure 9 is a vertical sectional view taken along the line 9 9 of Figure 7.

Figure 10 is a transverse sectional view taken along the line 10-10- of Figure 8.

As shown to advantage in Figures 1 and 3, the working chamber provided in accordance w th this invention is open at the bottom and is provided with side walls 12, and walls 13, and a top wall 14, arranged to form an enclosed chamber of substantially rectangular form; The walls of the working chamber may be reinforced and braced in any suitable manner to afford the necessary strength and to compensate for any variation in the bearing qualities of the soil or bed on which the footing is constructed. In the I present instance, I have shown structural bracing members .16 extending transversely between the side walls 12 and these side walls, together with the end walls 13, are additionally reinforced as by means of the rein forcing members appearing at 17.

The cofferdam consists of a plurality of cylindrical units erected on the top wall or roof of the working chamber. In the present instance, each cylindrical unit is shown as consisting of three sections including a bottom section '18, an intermediate section 19, and a top section20 fastened together in any suitable manner such as by means of the joining flanges appearing at 21. When building a-structure-such as a retaining Wall the cylindrical units are preferably arranged in close proximit to one another over the ent re length of t e working chamber, as illustrated in Figs. land '1. But, in building bridge piers, forgexample, the number of cylindrical units will ordinarily be decreased and the several units arranged in substantially spaced relation as shown to advantage in Fig. 5. V ertain of the cylindrical units are equipped with air locks 22 so that these units may be temporarily employed as shafting for supplying compressed air to the working chamber and for the lowering and removal of materials in the same manner as the independent shafting usually provided for this purpose. The cylindrical units equipped with the air locks are placed in communication with the interior of the working chamber through suitable openings 23 controlled by 1 doors 24. These doors 24 are not, however,

essential and may be dispensed with if desired. I

The cylindrical units of the cofferdam may be erected on the working chamber either before or during sinking of the chamber. In

some instances, the working chamber, carry in thereon the lowermost sections 18 of the cy indrical units, is shipped to the site and set in position. The remaining cylindrical sections 19 and 20 are then superimposed on lindrical units will be at the required elevation when the caisson is bottomed or grounded. Concrete or other suitable material is. then placed in the required number of the cylinders'to sink the caisson. Compressed air is then applied, through the air locks 22 and the cylindrical units connected therewith, in order to expel the water from the working chamber so that the work of excavation can be conveniently carried on by theworkmen in order to lower the working chamber to the required depth. The working chamber is then filled with concrete or other suitable material while still maintaining sulficientpressure of air within the chamber. 'The cylinders which have been temporarily used for shafting purposes, together with any other unfilled cylinders, are then filledin with concrete or the like to give. solidity to the complete structure.

In the case of a retaining wall structure, the topsof the upper sections of the cylindrical units forming the cofierdam may be tied together in a suitable manner such, for example, as by means of the bonding wall of concrete appearing at 25 in Fig. 6. Also, in the case of a retaining wall or the li ke, wherein it is necessary to leave gaps in the wall structure for thepassage of sluiceways or similar structures, this maybe conveniently accomplished by removing certain sections of the cylindrical units which have been previously filled with concrete or other material only to a point coinc ding with the lower ends of the sections to be removed sov that upon removal of such sections a gap or passageway is formed in the complete structure. Such an arrangement is shown in Figure 4 wherein it will be noted that the upper ends of the two centrally located cylindrical units are below the upper ends of the remaining units whereby a' gap 27 is provided in the complete structure. The advantages incident to the construction described in the foregoing may be to give access to the Working chamber during the course of the construction work is eliminated since certain of the cylindrical units of the 'cofi'erdam are available for this purpose; the present invention is more flexible in its application in that provision maybe made for causing individual units to terminate at any desired elevation above' or below the waterline byproviding a field'joint at the particular elevation selected, theconcrete being then poured up to the joint and the top portion of the cylinder removed to leave a gap in the upper portion of the wall structure; the working chamber may be made of any width required to provide the necessary area to suit the bearing capacity of various soils independent of the size or spacing of the cylindrical units rising from the roof of the working chamber. 7

Figures 6 to 9 inclusive show a modification wherein the working chamber is equipped with a conveying apparatus for conveying dirt and other refuse from re mote portions of the working chamber to a central opening 30 from whence such refuse may be conveniently removed through the cylindrical unit X. The conveying mech anism used in this connection is illustrated as comprising a pair of I beams 32 forming supporting tracks for the trolleys 33 carrying buckets or other conveying devices generally indicated at 34. Each I beam is supported in any suitable manner from the roof of the working chamber as shown to advantage in Figure 9.

Having thus fully described what I now conceive to be the preferred embodiment of my invention, it will be understood that various minor changes in the construction and arrangement of parts may be resorted to within the scope and spirit of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is 1. A method of erecting retaining walls, bridge piers and similar structures which consists in providing a working chamber open at the bottom, erecting a plurality of hollow cylindrical units on the roof of the working chamber to provide a coferdam, filling certain of said units with material to sink the working chamber and the cotterdam to the required depth, temporarily utilizing certain of the remaining cylindrical units as shafting for the introduction of compressed air into the working chamber and for the introduction and removal of materials, filling in the working chamber with material to form a footing and finally filling in the previously unfilled cylindrical units so that the working chamber and the cylindrical units form the permanent shell of the complete structure.

2. A retaining wall or foundation structure comprising a casing resting on the bed of a body of water and filled in with suitable material to constitute a permanent part of the footing of said structure and a plurality of coft'erdam units in the form of metal cylinders rising from the roof of said casing and also filled in with suitable material to constitute a permanent part of the upper portion of said structure.

3. A retaining wall or foundation structure as recited in claim 2 in which the height of the filled in cylinders is varied to provide gaps in the upper portion of the complete structure.

4. A retaining wall or foundation structure comprising acasing resting on the bed of a body of water and filled in with suitable material to provide a footing including the casing as the permanent outer shell and a plurality of hollow metal cylinders rising from the roof of the casing in side by side relation, said cylinders being arranged close to one another in a row extending practically over the entire length of the casing and being filled in with suitable material to provide a permanent superstructure.

5. A retaining wall or foundation structure comprising a casing resting on the bed of a body of water and filled in to form a footing, a plurality of hollow cylindrical shells rising from the roof of the casing and arranged close together in a row extending substantially the full length of the casing. said cylindrical shells being filled in with suitable material to form a permanent superstructure and certain of said cylindrical shells being made shorter than the remaining shells to provide a gap in the upper portion of the superstructure.

6. A method of erecting retaining walls, bridge piers and similar structures which consists in providing a working chamber open at the bottom, erecting a plurality of hollow cylindrical units on the roof of the working chamber, introducing filling material into certain of said units to sink the working chamber and the coiferdam to the required depth, temporarily utilizing certain of the remaining cylindrical units as shafting for the introduction of compressed air into the working chamber and for the introduction and removal of material, filling the working chamber when grounded to the required depth with material to form a footing and effecting a further introduction of filling material into the cylindrical units to completely {fill certain of the units while leaving portions of other units clear of filling material above a certain point and then removing the unfilled portions of the last mentioned units to leave gaps in the upper portion of the completed structure.

7. A retaining wall or foundation structure as recited in claim 2 in which the tops of the metal cylinders forming the coft'erdam are bonded together by a concrete cap.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand.

WALTER GRIESBAGH. 

